This Year's Shenzhen Electronics Expo: The Hottest Item Is Actually Electric Fans?

[Ebrun Original]

Perhaps due to Shenzhen's imminent summer, the spotlight at this year's Shenzhen Consumer Electronics Expo was captured by a variety of electric fans. In the small home appliances hall, fan manufacturers occupied nearly all the specially designed booths; across the entire exhibition, these booths also attracted the densest crowds.

This year's new product releases were dominated by "micro-innovations."

Some electric fans have become more refined and compact. Palm-sized fans, with battery life ranging from half an hour to several hours, feature more sophisticated shell designs and are equipped with various colored lights.

In terms of appearance and functionality, manufacturers showcased their ingenuity, creating all sorts of "oddly shaped" products to attract users with subtle functional and design innovations.

(Fans with an "octopus" base)

(Equipped with mist outlets for a cooler sensation)

Another noticeable trend is manufacturers integrating more functions and elements into a single product.

For instance, to adapt to different usage scenarios, magnetic attachment features have become widely adopted across various fan products; some car phone mounts, with minor modifications, now include fan and aromatherapy functions; there are even manufacturers who have added speakers to the base of fans, though "the sound quality isn't great—it's mainly for kids to play with."

(Wireless charging products that can charge three devices, complete with built-in lighting and audio functions)

Additionally, some manufacturers noted that competition is intensifying this year, forcing them to focus on performance to attract customers. For example, a cooling phone case displayed at one booth had developed a thick layer of frost. "Actually, it's harmful to the phone, but it looks more powerful and sells better in the market."

However, compared to previous years, there were far fewer exhibitors loudly promoting products via live streams. Many chose to return to traditional exhibition methods—negotiating deals and seeking clients on the floor. Some exhibitors, aiming to control channel pricing, even displayed signs prohibiting online retail price control for distributors and banning sales on Alibaba International Station and 1688.com.

Multiple manufacturers mentioned that business pressures remain as high as ever.

On one hand, products at the expo are still highly homogenized; similar-looking and functionally alike products from competitors are common, and copying is rampant. If one manufacturer introduces a slight innovation, identical versions quickly appear at other booths.

Factories are eager to break through—many envy the market success of brands like Lefant and Jisulife, and copycats are even present at the expo. But this path isn't easy. Numerous factories, accustomed to OEM and custom orders, lack genuine product development capabilities, leaving the initiative firmly with brands.

As a result, many exhibitors' products showed little overall change from last year. Some openly admitted: "There are no new products this year; what's on display is last year's inventory." Among stacked goods at several booths, the packaging showed obvious signs of aging and creases.

On the other hand, trade pressures stemming from the Middle East conflict have begun to impact upstream factories. Initially, shipping costs surged due to the war; now, with the conflict ongoing, no one can predict when trade will truly return to normal.

One exhibitor noted that current strategies are limited to two options: either wait and see until the situation stabilizes, or seek new opportunities—many factories are already striving to develop domestic trade clients.